Black One by Sunn O))) (CD, 2005)

Indie

4988044630284

9050141272

Sunn O)))

CD

2005

Experimental Rock

Black One

Rock

Sunn 0))) made their reputation on drone metal descended from the work of pioneers Earth, but BLACK ONE expands their palette to include just about every experimental style they've indulged in over their career. Stephen O'Malley and Greg Anderson, the band's principals, have invited kindred spirits like percussionist Oren Ambarchi and Xasthur's Malefic to the banquet, and the result is as meticulously orchestrated as a symphony, albeit one constructed of darker materials. Black metal atmosphere pervades nearly every corner of the album, particularly on the epic "Bathory Erzebet," which features a harrowing Malefic performance recorded in a casket.

1

Uncut (p.105) - 3 stars out of 5 -- "Grim, bellowed vocals meet distorted doom grind deep in the icy wastes." The Wire (p.63) - "[A]s every horn-huffing stoner knows, the devil's in the detail and, listened to with headphones, this makes for a suitably psychedelic, if at points slightly camp, trip." CMJ (No. 934, p.7) - "...Sunn0)))'s most realized experiment to date." Mojo (Publisher) (p.118) - 4 stars out of 5 - "Sunn O))) have somehow found still more ingenious ways to slow time to a crawl through the farthest reaches of the musical abyss." Mojo (Publisher) (p.60) - Ranked #5 in Mojo's "Top Ten Underground Albums Of 2005."

USA